County jurisdictions graded ?F' for tobacco policies

LAKE COUNTY -- The cities of Clearlake and Lakeport and unincorporated Lake County received overall grades of F in the American Lung Association in California's State of Tobacco Control ? California Local Grades report.

An American Lung Association report released Wednesday tracked progress on key tobacco control policies at the federal and state levels.

While California earned an A grade for smokefree air policies, it received a D for its low cigarette tax, an F for failing to adequately fund tobacco prevention and control programs, and another F for poor coverage of smoking cessation and treatment services.

The report also found that California has not increased its cigarette tax since 1999 and now ranks 33rd in the country at 87 cents per pack, compared to the U.S. average of $1.48 per pack. States including Texas, Oklahoma and Montana now have higher tobacco taxes than California.

Although California receives $68 million in tobacco-related revenue annually, it spends only 15 percent of what the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends to adequately fund tobacco prevention programs and services to help people quit smoking.

The California association released its findings in conjunction with the national report. It issued scores based upon jurisdictions' policies for smokefree outdoor air, smokefree housing and reducing sales of tobacco products.

The cities of Clearlake and Lakeport earned four points for recreation areas in the category of smokefree outdoor air. The scoring earned them a single point toward their overall grade. Unincorporated Lake County failed to earn points in any category of the survey.

San Rafael and Marin County received the highest grades in the region with an overall tobacco control grade of A.

"Cities and counties in California have always led the way with strong tobacco control policies, and that continues to this day," Fred Lurmann, chair of the Leadership Board of the American Lung Association in California ? Greater Bay Area, said. "Safeguarding our communities from the negative consequences of tobacco is critical. The low grades represent real health consequences."

View the national report at www.stateoftobaccocontrol.org/. View the scores for Lake County jurisdictions at www.lung.org/associations/states/california/assets/pdfs/sotc-2013-county-grades/lake-county.pdf.